Dallas Cowboys IR Update: 4 players to return, expected dates, and impact

Dallas Cowboys IR Update

Kelvin Joseph, CB

Expected Role: Eventual CB2

The Dallas Cowboys entered the 2021 NFL Draft with the plan to draft a starting CB to play alongside Trevon Diggs. Dallas was/is extremely thin at boundary options (hence the reason Anthony Brown is currently starting) and knew they couldn’t be legit contenders unless they addressed it early.

Plan A was to draft one of the top-2 CBs expected to be there at Pick 10. Turns out they were scooped up just before Dallas went on the clock. Dallas shifted to plan B and that was Kelvin Joseph in the second round.

The pressure is on for this pick to work out. The Cowboys are having issues at CB2 again this season and desperately need someone to fill the void. The uber-raw Joseph is hopefully that man.

In the preseason finale, “Bossman Fat” injured his hamstring/groin pretty significantly. Mike McCarthy has singled him out as being still a couple weeks away so there’s a good chance Joseph doesn’t get back to practice until the latter part of October. Keep in mind, he still has to win a job.

McCarthy wasn’t as optimistic sounding as Joseph was on Twitter so everyone should pump the breaks on expectations the next couple weeks.

Even being optimistic, it’s doubtful Joseph will be able to claim a starting spot much before Thanksgiving. He still needs to heal, practice, and develop as a player before the Dallas Cowboys can hand him a starting post.

This return from injury is very likely the most impactful on the roster depending how much Joseph develops.